Summer Stock

Judy Garland teams up with Gene Kelly for the third and final time in this original 1950 musical, Garland’s last for MGM. Garland is Jane Falbury, a young woman tasked with running the family farm alone following the death of her parents. Jane finds the spread overrun with a theatrical troupe who were invited by little sister Abigail (Gloria DeHaven), a spoiled girl with dreams of stardom and a crush on Joe D. Ross (Kelly), a charismatic entrepreneur who is trying to mount his own original musical with a group of idealistic young theater folk. Summer Stock is an example of the "hey kids, let’s put on a show" genre that Garland and Mickey Rooney perfected as juvenile stars in the 1930s, with Kelly taking Rooney’s place. Unfortunately, there’s nothing original in the story and the original songs are largely forgettable; the standout number "Get Happy" is actually an older song revived for Garland that became one of her signature tunes. But this is still a lively, colorful production, featuring terrific dance numbers with Garland matching Kelly step for step and a stellar dance solo by Kelly using a squeaky floorboard, a piece of sandpaper, and a couple of sheets of newspaper to add percussion. Eddie Bracken costars as Garland’s dull beau who is being pushed into marriage by his banker father (Ray Collins), and Marjorie Main and Phil Silvers play comic relief as the sardonic housekeeper and troupe clown, respectively. Extras include a 2006 retrospective featurette, a classic cartoon, an archival short, and an audio-only outtake of the song "Fall in Love." A strong optional purchase. (S. Axmaker)